Good Thursday morning. SPEAKER VOTE in House Republican Conference at noon: Sherman thinks it’ll go till 1:30 or 2. The new Speaker – Kevin McCarthy, we expect -- will schedule the majority leader and whip elections after being elected on the floor on Oct. 29. So we expect that vote in early November. A month-long leadership race – Politico’s dream.

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--“Kevin McCarthy has a Freedom Caucus problem,” by Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan: “[T]he group rejected McCarthy, instead endorsing long-shot candidate Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.) for the speakership. The rebuke makes McCarthy’s path to eventually leading the House Republican Conference even more daunting and complicated. Not because he won't have the votes to win the job — he is nearly certain to prevail in the conference election [today] and remains the odds-on favorite to win a floor vote on Oct. 29. ...

“But ... he’ll have to move closer to the Freedom Caucus ... [And] every step ... is a step away from the critical middle of the GOP Conference. Between now and the end of the month, McCarthy must perform a delicate, constantly evolving dance to become the 54th speaker of the House.” http://politi.co/1GxHP7S

--CALLING HAWKS – Dick Cheney backs McCarthy: “I’ve known Kevin ... for many years. He is a good man and a strong leader.” http://politi.co/1MfhCNc

BREAKING – “Clinton [private server] subject to hack attempts from China, [South] Korea, Germany [after she left office],” by AP’s Ken Dilanian, Jack Gillum and Stephen Braun: “While the attempts were apparently blocked by a ‘threat monitoring’ product that Clinton’s employees connected to her network in October 2013, there was a period of more than three months from June to October 2013 when that protection had not been installed.” http://bit.ly/1OnuSE3

IF YOU READ ONLY ONE THING: Emotional interview of Iraqi parliament member Vian Dakhil by Susan Glasser at Politico’s “Women Rule” event at The Willard. Audience members were sobbing; attendees SHAKE when they talk about it. It was a room full of activators: Documents for a non-profit were signed in our green room. Hill aides in the audience called an audible and had appointments with congressional leaders scheduled before Dakhil even left the stage.

“Obama plucked them from the mountaintop – but U.S. hasn’t been heard from since: Vian Dakhil was hopeful when Obama helped rescue thousands of Yazidis from ISIL a year ago. Her people now feel abandoned,” by Eliza Collins: “In 2014, Vian Dakhil's stirring plea for international intervention helped inspire ... Obama to order airstrikes and launch a humanitarian effort to rescue thousands of Yazidi Iraqis who were trapped on a mountainside under assault by Islamic State.

“A year later, Dakhil, one of two Yazidi members of the Iraqi parliament, says her people have been abandoned by Washington and the international community. In an emotional, at times tearful, on-stage interview at POLITICO’s ‘Women Rule’ event, ... Dakhil described a full-blown humanitarian crisis — 420,000 Yazidis living in refugee camps in tents with mud floors, women and girls continuing to be kidnapped, 2,200 girls in captivity as sexual slaves, and survivors returning from the horror of ISIL captivity with no resources for psychological support. Thousands of orphans have no homes.” http://politi.co/1RvoeLV

TOP TALKER – Politico posts a blockbuster from Dennis Ross, whose “Doomed to Succeed: The US-Israeli relationship from Truman to Obama” will be published Tuesday by Farrar, Straus and Giroux -- “Bibi ‘Did Everything But Use the N-Word’: How [National Security Adviser] Susan Rice stymied Israel and other bombshell revelations from Obama’s disillusioned peace negotiator”:

“Rice, reflecting her generally more combative mind-set, would say to Abe Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, that in reacting to the Joint Plan of Action, Netanyahu’s posture was outrageous. In her view, the Israeli leader did everything but ‘use “the n- word” in describing the president.’” http://politi.co/1LjyEO2

SUNDAY SO FAR: Ben Carson on “Face the Nation.”

KOCHS HOLDING OUT: Charles Koch – whose “Good Profit: How Creating Value for Others Built One of the World’s Most Successful Companies” is out Tuesday from Crown Business -- tells Anthony Mason in an interview for “CBS Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood”: “You know, there’s a lot of press that [Walker] was our man, and we put money behind -- we put no money behind ... We haven’t put any money behind any of these candidates.” Mason sat down with Koch Tuesday at the Wichita office of Koch Industries, and at the billionaire’s home.

5 DAYS TO DEM DEBATE in Vegas – “Inside Bernie’s unorthodox debate prep: He won’t run mock sessions,” by Gabe Debenedetti: “Sanders started studying ... not even a full week ago. And that’s because his two top aides sat him down in Burlington on Friday and asked if he had a plan. ... Tad Devine, the campaign’s chief strategist, ... met with Sanders and campaign manager Jeff Weaver last week to kick off the debate planning[:] ‘[O]ne of the reasons to not do formal debate prep sessions is it gets rehearsed.’” http://politi.co/1Qa3bh0

** Presented by Chevron: Doers in Washington, D.C. help make this nation great -- and all of that doing deserves distinction. Chevron congratulates the Service to America Medal honorees, whose commitment to doing inspires us all. http://tinyurl.com/pfcv7sj **

CLICK DU JOUR – November’s Vanity Fair has a 9-page spread on “FORTRESS HILLARY ... How Hillary Clinton’s Loyal Confidants Could Cost Her the Election,” by Sarah Ellison in November’s Vanity Fair: “Throughout her many years in public life ... Clinton has surrounded herself with protectors: a tightly knit Praetorian Guard, mute and loyal. The result has been the opposite of what was intended. When troubles arise ... she retreats into a defensive crouch, shielding herself inside a cocoon of secrecy, with a small circle of intimates standing watch.

“With each new round of trouble and scandal, the circle seems to draw tighter. The penchant for secrecy—for all operations to be closely and privately held—increases by yet another increment. But this never proves to be a solution. The secrecy and the closed nature of her dealings generate problems of their own, which in turn prompt efforts to restrict information and draw even more tightly inside a group of intimates ... [F]or some, she is also the world’s most high-maintenance and high-profile meal ticket. To get into her circle, one must behave with extraordinary loyalty. Once you’re in, it’s like Fight Club.” http://vnty.fr/1jb1Hs6

--Statement from Clinton Foundation President Donna Shalala: “I’m out! Thanks to the amazing work of the stroke team—doctors and nurses—at Mount Sinai Roosevelt and the Mount Sinai Health System. Today I am feeling strong and ready to get back to work. ... I was lucky to be in a great city with a first class stroke program close enough to reverse my condition. That is the lesson for everyone. If you have symptoms don’t wait to get help.”

CHRIS CHRISTIE video, “Our Presidency,” as he spends three days doing six town halls in N.H.: “Our Country. Our America. Be Heard.” YouTubehttp://bit.ly/1jbDXUB

--“Anonymous donors send millions to pro-Rubio group,” by AP’s Julie Bykowicz: “While other ... candidates also have ties to secret-money groups, the Rubio arrangement is the boldest. Every pro-Rubio television commercial so far in the early primary states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina has been paid for not by his campaign or ... by a super PAC that identifies its donors, but instead by a nonprofit called Conservative Solutions Project.” http://bit.ly/1NpsE8x

SNEAK PEEK – Bloomberg Businessweek cover, “The Vast Right Wing Conspirator: Meet Steve Bannon, America’s most dangerous political operative ... The New Vast Right-Wing Conspirator Wants to Take Out Both Clinton and Bush,” by Josh Green: Breitbart executive chairman Steve “Bannon’s life is a succession of Gatsbyish reinventions that made him rich and landed him squarely in the middle of the 2016 presidential race: He’s been a naval officer, investment banker, minor Hollywood player, and political impresario. ...

“Today, backed by mysterious investors and a stream of Seinfeld royalties, he sits at the nexus of what Hillary Clinton once dubbed ‘the vast right-wing conspiracy’ ... But this ‘conspiracy,’ at least under Bannon, has mutated into something different from what Clinton described: It’s as eager to go after establishment Republicans such as Boehner or Jeb Bush as Democrats like Clinton.” See the hilarious cover. http://bit.ly/1jehnvh Read the story. http://bloom.bg/1MfE6hl

TOP-ED -- BLOOMBERG and KERRY op-ed, “All Climate Change is Local”: “Cities around the world are demonstrating that fighting climate change and spurring economic growth can go hand-in-hand. In the years after the global recession, for instance, New York City helped lead the nation in job growth while also reducing its carbon footprint by 19 percent.” http://bv.ms/1VGvi99

DRIVING THE DAY: HILLARY TARGETS WALL STREET with reform plan to be released today: An aide said she “will unveil proposals intended to equip prosecutors with better tools in order to prosecute Wall Street executives who break the law. She will also outline new ideas for holding financial executives accountable for egregious misconduct by their subordinates -- ensuring that they lose their bonuses or in some cases their jobs.

“These proposals will be a key part of a larger financial reform agenda that will bring more accountability to Wall Street and constrain risk-taking at large banks and elsewhere in the financial system. As she's said, ‘Too Big to Fail is still too big a problem.’”

The campaign said some details will be added with the formal announcement. But there are four pillars: 1) High-frequency trading tax; 2) Strengthening the Volcker Rule; 3) Improving individual accountability; 4) Hold banks more accountable.

The campaign said: “Clinton understands the financial crisis showed how irresponsible behavior in the financial sector can devastate the lives of Americans across the country. That is why she is putting forward a comprehensive plan to hold Wall Street accountable and reign in irresponsible risk-taking in the financial sector. Her plan will tackle abuses and risks at big banks as well as other institutions. And it will hold bad actors on Wall Street accountable ... individuals [and] corporations. ...

“Clinton would impose a tax targeted specifically at harmful HFT [high-frequency trading]. In particular, the tax would hit HFT strategies involving excessive levels of order cancellations, which make our markets less stable and less fair. Clinton would also reform our stock market rules to ensure equal access to markets and information, increase transparency, and minimize conflicts of interest.” Politico Pro has the full text.http://politico.pro/1VG7wiL

--“Barney Frank advising Clinton on Wall Street plan,” by Zach Warmbrodt: “Frank told POLITICO ... he has been working with campaign staff including Gary Gensler — a key ally in the eyes of Dodd-Frank supporters and often a foe of big banks during his time as chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates derivatives markets.” http://politi.co/1FYMB3j

ROMNEY endorsement? Ken Vogel reports: Ann Romney told 125 supporters that she and her husband would endorse one of the GOP hopefuls if it appeared that a candidate they deemed unelectable had a realistic avenue to winning the party’s nomination. She spoke at a Monday night party celebrating the release of her memoir, “In This Together: My Story,” about living with MS. People close to the Romneys say they are skeptical that Trump or Cruz could win the general. If the couple were to endorse, the most likely beneficiary would be Bush or Rubio.

--MRS. ROMNEY debuts at a very strong #7 on the N.Y. Times bestseller list of Oct. 18: “A memoir by the wife of the 2012 Republican presidential candidate discusses her faith, family and experience with MS. ... A dagger (†) indicates that some book- stores report receiving bulk orders.”

WHAT N.H. IS READING – Union Leader’s Dan Tuohy “Granite Status” column: “2016 emerges as year of women in Granite State.” A1 tease, “Hillary Clinton and Carly Fiorina circled each other, coming within a half-mile of one another at one point Monday and Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-NH, and Gov. Maggie Hassan, D-Newfields, are turning the ignition key on their blockbuster showdown for U.S. Senate.” http://bit.ly/1N1auaa

WHAT NEVADA IS READING -- “Reid files suit against exercise companies over eye injury,” by Las Vegas Sun’s Kyle Roerink: “Less than a year after suffering an eye injury while exercising with an elastic band, ... Reid is suing the three exercise companies that manufacture the TheraBand that snapped and lacerated his face for negligence. ... The complaint ... alleges that Reid, 75, suffered damages exceeding $50,000.” http://bit.ly/1LnfC4V

OBAMA ALUMNI – ANEESHA CHOPRA to Albright Stonebridge: “adds to ASG’s growing technology expertise as a senior advisor, and will use his extensive knowledge of cyber and innovation issues to help clients pursue growth and capture opportunities in markets around the world. [He was a]ppointed by President Obama as the first White House Chief Technology Officer (2009 – 2012).” http://bit.ly/1GxL2V3

TRANSITIONS -- Pelosi Announces New Floor Director Keith Stern – “Stern will serve as Director of Floor Legislative Operations, replacing Jerry Hartz who departed the House of Representatives in September after 28 years of service. ... Stern previously served as Chief of Staff and Rules Associate to Congressman James P. McGovern, and has worked in the House of Representatives since joining the office of Congresswoman Jane Harman in 1998.”

TRAILER OF THE DAY – “Sherlock”: “special episode of the Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman series ... in Victorian England.” http://eonli.ne/1L13N7h

VALLEY TALK -- “Amazon Said to Weigh Creating a Live Online Television Service,” by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw: “Amazon ... has reached out to major media companies including CBS Corp. and Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal to express interest in carrying their channels ... A live service would expand the online retailer’s investment in video entertainment and bring it into direct competition with pay-TV providers like Comcast and AT&T.” http://bloom.bg/1VFKI2O

SPORTS BLINK: For all you “illegal bat” experts, AP’s Arnie Stapleton looks at other OBSCURE NFL RULES: The kickoff returner “can step out of bounds, reach back on the field of play and grab the ball to prevent a touchback ... ‘At the option of the home team, both the players’ benches may be located on the same side of the field.’ Nobody does this anymore but the Packers used to when they split their home schedule between Green Bay and Milwaukee until they abandoned the old County Stadium 20 years ago. ... While all players must wear shoulder, thigh and knee pads, hip pads aren’t required.” http://bit.ly/1Q9U7ZG

OUT AND ABOUT: Amy Nathan and Howard Fineman hosted a book party last night at their home in Chevy Chase, DC for MSNBC National Correspondent Joy-Ann Reid, in honor of pub of her book “Fracture: Barack Obama, the Clintons, and the Racial Divide” about race and the Democratic Party. “Born in Brooklyn, reared in Denver, the daughter of parents born in Africa and a graduate of Harvard, there is probably no one in America better suited to bridge the racial divides she describes in her book,” was Howard’s toast. $19.01 on Amazonhttp://amzn.to/1Rva25C

DESSERT -- “Quinns ... to list D.C. mansion for $3.5 million,” by Kate Bennett: “The Quinns are about to list their sprawling white [Wesley Heights] mansion for $3.5 million — a price that includes six bedrooms, a pool, exercise room, putting green and a ton of Washington history. Jack Quinn served as White House counsel for Bill Clinton before founding lobbying and communications outfit Quinn Gillespie & Associates. Susanna Quinn ... last year launched an app called Veluxe, for on-demand beauty services. In the 10 years the couple has lived in the house, they’ve hosted dozens of parties and played hosts to senators, governors, congressmen, ambassadors and media heavyweights ...

“The couple, along with their 3-year-old son, Storm Quinn, and Susanna’s teenage daughter from a previous marriage, will soon move to their new home in the luxury enclave of Phillips Park, a private community just off of Foxhall Road.” http://politi.co/1jeiYkJ

** Presented by Chevron: Doers in Washington, D.C., help make this nation great -- and all of that doing deserves distinction. Chevron congratulates the Service to America Medal honorees, whose commitment to doing inspires us all. http://tinyurl.com/nw7xn5f **

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